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TIL that mantis shrimps have 16 color-receptive cones in their eyes, compared to just 3 in humans, giving them the ability to see a vast array of colors. They possess one of the fastest punches in the animal kingdom. They can strike with the speed of a .22 caliber bullet.

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6Eb8Z TIL about Gordon, or "Whipped Peter", an enslaved African American. The pictures of his scourged back provided Northerners with visual evidence of brutal treatment of slaves. Abolitionists distributed the pictures throughout the United States and internationally to show the abuses of slavery.
Wk64o TIL of Ben Salomon, an army dentist who earned the Medal of Honor in World War 2. When his field hospital was about to be overrunned, he manned a machine gun and killed 98 Japanese soldiers. He died, but not before his wounded colleagues were evacuated.
PYJbO TIL the potato and tomato are both native to Peru. Though commonly associated with Eurasian culinary traditions, both plants were unknown to the eastern hemisphere until 500 years ago.
AM5x TIL in 2004 Bungie started a viral marketing campaign called I Love Bees which had participants from all over the world answering pay phones found by decoding GPS coordinates and times from the website. Hundreds participated, and not a single phone call was missed.
a8eWN TIL that Catherine of Aragon was married to King Henry VIII’s older brother, Arthur, for a few months before his untimely death in 1502. Because the marriage was never consummated, she was granted a papal dispensation, allowing her to marry Henry in 1509.